The present invention relates to a device by means of which cigarettes are fed to the wrapping line of a packaging machine.
Conventionally, in most instances, cigarettes are supplied to a packaging machine by way of a chute, conveyed either in special containers, or on a belt in a continuous stream.
The cigarettes emerge from the chute gathered into groups, each one of which comprises a number of single cigarettes corresponding to the intended contents of a finished packet.
Thereafter, the quality of the cigarettes of each group is controlled, and any groups containing even one defective cigarette are discarded as reject. To the end of reducing the number of the groups of cigarettes rejected, and thus achieve a considerable economic benefit, use is made of a quality control device as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,592,470 to verify the integrity of the single cigarettes contained in the chute and reject any defective items before their arrival at the grouping station.
The chute of a conventional machine is divided at the bottom end into essentially vertical channels which are substantially identical in width to the diameter of the single cigarette and equal in number to the number of cigarettes making up one group.
The previously patented control device in question comprises an element, associated with each channel, by means of and an element by which any defective cigarette is ejected.
In the case of conventional control devices, the cigarettes often will not always occupy the control station positioned in the same manner relative to the respective monitoring element, and the weight bearing down on the cigarettes at the reject point is such as to hinder the action of the components which effect the ejection.